Member States Urged to Collaborate in Efforts to Protect Journalists

By Lorraine Farquharson Reprint | | Print |

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 16 2013 (IPS) - Efforts to improve and implement international legal provisions for the protection of journalists across the globe was the main focus of a meeting held at the UN Security Council Friday.

Frank La Rue, UN Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, reminded the Council of the increasingly detrimental situations journalists were facing. He commented that perpetrators seemingly feel a sense of privilege for these acts of violence, which is then the driving force for the growing number of killings. “The sense of impunity is a main cause for the recurrence of episodes of attacks against journalists around the world,” La Rue stressed.

Reporters Without Borders (RWB), an organisation devoted to protecting journalists assigned to dangerous areas, began producing annual reports in 1995 to reveal the amount of journalists being murdered each year. Results showed that between March 2011 and now 84 journalists were killed in Syria alone. Globally, a total of 89 journalists were killed in 2012 – that’s roughly seven per month, or almost two per day. The RWB stated that 2012 was the most baneful for journalists as it is a clear sign that their safety as news providers is deteriorating.

Resolution 1738, initiated by RWB in 2006, condemns intentional attacks against journalists in conflict situations – which the Security Council adopted. Yet, murder rates are still increasing. This was the impetus for the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s (UNESCO) overall coordination effort to launch the new 2012 “Plan of Action” for journalists’ protection.

Despite the plan, hundreds of journalists have been forced to flee their country; many are in even more danger while passing through transit countries and approximately 53 journalists have been killed since the start of this year – sparking the General Assembly’s adoption of a new resolution on Nov. 26. It calls for the implementation of tougher measures to combat impunity.

The latest crime against journalists was the Dec. 7 killing of Juan Carlos Argeñal Medina, who was shot dead in his home in southeastern Honduras. “The bullet must not be allowed to replace the pen,” said UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova. “Every country should enjoy a free press in which journalists and media owners are allowed to exercise independence in collecting and reporting news without fearing violent reprisals.

RWB stresses that it is essential the Security Council itself urgently address this issue and calls for an amendment to Article 8 of the International Criminal Court’s statute for deliberate attacks on journalists and media workers to be defined as war crimes.

“We intend to tackle the Security Council’s members, and the UN in general, about the importance of protecting journalists. [We need] to remind member states of their obligations to prevent acts of violence against them and combat impunity for those responsible,” said Christophe Deloire, Secretary-General of RWB, who attended the meeting Friday. “This resolution is a forward step in the right direction.”

RWB said the November murders of two journalists in Mali, as well as many others in different countries (such as Syria, Somalia, Pakistan, Brazil, etc.) are only some of the very recent extreme cases which reveal the daily risks journalists face in order to keep the world up-to-date with events.

The organisation also said most cases of violence and threats toward journalists are rarely investigated. Responsible perpetrators remain hidden among society and are never brought to justice for their actions. Before a journalist is killed, threats and other forms of attacks take place without any attention from the national authorities or the international community, La Rue noted.

“In the last two years, I have prepared letters on attacks against 171 journalists to 40 different countries,” he said. “However, the problem that remains to be addressed is not a legal void but the lack of any verification of respect by member states for their obligations.”